Battery makers expect turnaround as way cleared to resume ESS business

South Korean battery manufacturers on Tuesday expressed optimism after receiving government approval to resume business in the area of energy storage systems, after being forced to suspend it due to a probe into a series of fires at 23 ESS facilities. After suffering losses in the first quarter of this year largely because of delayed supplies, the country’s two major ESS providers, Samsung SDI and LG Chem, are expected to resume business in the second half of the year in hopes of recoverin

June 11, 2019

Instagram fastest-growing social media app in S. Korea: survey

The photo-sharing application Instagram is gaining popularity faster than any other social media app in South Korea with young Koreans leading the trend, a survey showed Tuesday. According to the survey of 33,000 Android smartphone users carried out last month by Wise App, time spent on Instagram amounted to a combined total of 2.6 billion minutes for all respondents -- a 73 percent increase from the same period a year before. Instagram’s on-year growth in Korea was stronger than that of o

June 11, 2019

YouTube blocks preteen users from livestreaming

YouTube has updated its safety guidelines to restrict creators below the age of 13 from livestreaming without adult supervision. YouTube Korea said Friday on its official blog that it is blocking preteen users from livestreaming without being accompanied by an adult. The change had been announced on the company’s global blog on June 3.   “When it comes to kids, we take an extra cautious approach towards our enforcement and we’re always making improvements to our prote

June 11, 2019

Hyper-speed internet to be available all across country next year: ICT ministry

　Those living in South Korea are expected to enjoy the benefits of hyper-speed internet in every nook and cranny of the country from as early as next year, as the Korean government pledged to designate it “mandatory business” for internet service providers.　The Ministry of Science and ICT said Monday that it will mandate telecommunications companies provide ultra-fast internet to every part of South Korea. The initiative is to be enforced on Jan. 1, 2020 via government decree, the mi

June 10, 2019

SK hynix launches data research lab, hires scientist for smart chipmaking

SK hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip provider, has launched a data research lab to seek optimal solutions for its manufacturing processes and R&D projects via the use of artificial intelligence and data analysis. The new lab, along with the existing data science division, will be led by Kim Young-han, a computer engineering professor at University of California San Diego, renowned in the areas of learning theory and quantum information processing, the company said Monday. K

June 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] SK Innovation demands W1b from LG Chem in defamation countersuit

On the heels of a lawsuit filed by LG Chem in the United States, SK Innovation sued its South Korean competitor for defamation in a local court, claiming 1 billion won in damages in a new chapter in the ongoing legal battle. The country’s top energy business and newcomer to the lithium-ion battery market said Monday that it could no longer endure “groundless accusations” brought against it by rival LG Chem. LG Chem, in response, said it feels “regret” over SK Innova

June 10, 2019

S. Korean tech giants feeling edgy over US-China trade disputes

South Korea’s tech giants including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are increasingly on edge over the ongoing economic brinkmanship between the United States and China, in light of a reported warning from Beijing not to cooperate with the Trump administration’s China ban, according to industry sources Sunday. “We will need to step up monitoring on the issue,” said an official from one of the major companies based in Seoul. “Companies here will watch the situation c

June 9, 2019

KT chief urges global cooperation on 5G tech at GES　

　Major South Korean mobile carrier KT has urged global leaders to enhance cooperation to capitalize on the fifth-generation cellular network amid growing expectations over the technology’s business applications.　During the Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2019 in The Hague, Netherlands, from Monday to Wednesday, KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other policymakers around the world to share insights in leading 5G transformation.　Stressing Korea’s

June 6, 2019

S. Korea lags behind advanced nations in energy transition: WEF

South Korea is behind advanced countries in terms of its efforts to seek environmentally sustainable energy development, a report released by the World Economic Forum showed Thursday.South Korea placed 48th spot among 115 countries surveyed in terms of the Energy Transition Index (ETI) in 2019. Among 32 nations categorized as advanced economies, South Korea ranked 30th, the report showed.The index evaluates a country's efforts to "transition to a secure, sustainable, affordable and inclusiv

June 6, 2019

Shuttle Delivery, not just another food delivery platform

Shuttle Delivery was among the first companies to start delivering foreign food and gourmet dishes in Itaewon in 2016, targeting expatriates, foreign tourists and Koreans. It has since grown into the biggest food delivery platform for the expat community in Seoul with 49,500 registered customers. Recently, it has begun to expand outside of Itaewon to areas such as Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Pronvice. It is now eyeing plans to enter Busan City.Shuttle Delivery CEO Jason Boutte said it all started wit

June 6, 2019

Samsung further slashes mobile business in China, shifts to India

Samsung Electronics will further downsize its ailing smartphone business in China while seeking to expand growth in India, according to the industry on Wednesday. The world’s top smartphone vendor is reducing the workforce of its only mobile device factory in Huizhou, Guangdong province, reported Chinese English-language media outlet Caixin.The size of the reduction has not been confirmed, though the Chinese report said layoffs are being carried out on a voluntary basis, with employee

June 5, 2019

SKT teams up with Sinclair on 5G broadcasting in US

JEJU ISLAND -- A friendly match between US soccer teams was broadcast live on 12-inch screens installed into every seat of a shiny white sport utility vehicle cruising the streets of Korea’s southern Jeju Island. Broadcast from multiple angles in the stadium, the sporting event was punctuated by personalized TV commercials, streaming different content tailored to each passenger depending on their interests as preregistered with the car. The futuristic scene was the latest effort by SK Tele

June 4, 2019

Samsung expands into GPU market with AMD

A new technology partnership has been formed between South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and the United States’ AMD on low-power and high-performance mobile graphics, according to the companies Tuesday. Under the multiyear partnership, Samsung Electronics will license AMD’s graphics intellectual property, based on the recently announced, highly-scalable Radeon graphics architecture, for use in its mobile devices including smartphones. Samsung will pay AMD license fees and royalti

June 4, 2019

Samsung starts 6G network research at new center

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it has embarked on initial research on the sixth-generation telecommunications network by launching a new research center. Samsung recently formed the Advanced Communications Research Center under Samsung Research, the company’s main R&D organization, based in southern Seoul. The tech giant has expanded the existing telecommunications research team to the level of a center after the launch of fifth-generation technologies.  “The current team

June 4, 2019

Samsung CEO says Galaxy Home to be launched in Q3

Samsung Electronics’ Consumer Electronics CEO Kim Hyun-suk said Tuesday that the company will launch the Galaxy Home speaker in the third quarter of this year. “The Galaxy Home speaker, which will be the center of Samsung’s home appliances, is planned to be launched in mid-second half of the year,” Kim told The Korea Herald in response to a question. Kim answered the question after a press conference held to unveil Samsung’s new lifestyle-focused vision for consumer

June 4, 2019

South Korea’s websites ‘unfriendly’ to people with disabilities: survey

　Most South Korean websites have designs that are too complicated for disabled people to navigate, a government study showed Monday, despite mounting calls for the government and companies to ensure equal access to internet use. 　According to research by the Ministry of Science and ICT on 1,000 websites operated by private entities in 2018, about 75 percent of them failed to meet the government’s standards for web accessibility. 　The standards aim to remove barriers for disabled people whe

June 3, 2019

[News Focus] Samsung viewing current situation as ‘new crisis’

Understanding the latest circumstances as a “new crisis” phase for Samsung Electronics, the top conglomerate in Korea appears to be seeking measures to tackle a series of challenges looming large over the tech giant, according to industry sources Monday. The sense of urgency within Samsung has been felt across the business community, as recent remarks made by Vice Chairman and heir apparent Lee Jae-yong went public. On Saturday, Lee appeared in the lobby of Samsung’s semiconduc

June 3, 2019

Samsung to focus on its core amid rising uncertainties

Sometimes, in the world of business, the best defense is a good offense, and it seems like Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong wanted to share this message with a handful of key figures at the South Korean tech giant to fend off rising challenges to its business. Lee held a meeting with five heads of Samsung’s major divisions over the weekend to discuss its business strategy amid a weak memory chip market and intensifying trade conflict between the United States and China. 

June 3, 2019

Kakao, Netmarble, 3 others submit final bid for Nexon: sources

    Kakao Corp., Netmarble Corp., and three private equity firms submitted final bids for the parent of South Korean gaming firm Nexon, in possibly one of the biggest gaming deals worldwide, financial sources said Sunday.   In an auction that closed on May 31, mobile messaging app Kakao, Korea's No. 2 game company Netmarble and private equity firms KKR & Co., Bain Capital and MBK Partners submitted final bids to acquire a 98.64 percent stake in Nexon's holding compan

June 2, 2019

Animation most popular content online: survey

　With an increasing number of people seeking to capitalize on YouTube and other streaming services as a lucrative business model, animation was found to be the most popular content among South Korean subscribers, an industry survey showed Sunday.  　According to local entertainment company CJ E&M, which analyzed its 1,400 affiliated streaming channels, those featuring animation content attracted the largest numbers of subscribers in April, about 1.19 million. 　Content targeting children

June 2, 2019